Moth catcher puts rare breeds on record

Nov 21 2009 by Tony Henderson, The Journal

Environment Editor Tony Henderson talks to a moth man with a mission.

AN unlikely mix of moths and marriage make up Keith Regan’s livelihood. Keith, who lives in Whitley Bay, worked as a production manager at a Cramlington factory for 20 years and put in another seven years as a facilities manager with Northumberland County Council.

But 10 years ago he was made redundant. “I decided I wasn’t going to work for anybody else again,” he says.

Keith capitalised on his talent for wildlife photography and set up his Concept wedding pictures business.

And he also made the most of his interest in moths. Keith, who is Northumberland recorder for moths, has been working as a consultant with Northumbrian Water.

He has completed a moth survey of four of the company’s sites in County Durham.

Keith targeted sewage treatment works at Horden on the coast, which is adjacent to magnesian limestone grassland and Honey Hill, a moorland site near Castleside.

He also staked out Tunstall reservoir near Wolsingham, which includes part of the Blackstone Bank oak woodland site of special scientific interest, and Barkers Haugh treatment works in Durham City.

He trapped over 3,000 moths of 334 different species.

Three species had never been found before in County Durham.

At Horden, he captured two North East rarities. One of the moths, ebulea crocealis, had been last recorded in the county in 1874.

The other, small blood-vein moth, was last logged in County Durham at the turn of the last century.

The moth haul was only a sample in that the light-catching equipment will only attract specimens in a 50m radius and only around 20% of moths in the area will come into that zone.

In Northumberland and County Durham, there are about 1,300 moth species and 2,500 in the UK as a whole.

Moths, which tend to lose out to colourful butterflies in the popularity stakes, are a vital part of the food chain.

Birds like partridges and blue tits feed moth caterpillars to their young.